Great gallant hero Maharana Pratap

August 10, 2005

By Madhu Ved

Maharana Pratap was a great Rajput King. The Rajputs, a brave and

chivalrous race who ruled over large parts of India before the ascent

of the Mughals. They were the first to resist the Mughal invaders and

many wars were fought between the Rajputs and the Mughals. Though the

Mughals spread across the north of India easily, they were

unsuccessful in capturing central India due to the tough opposition

from the Rajput kings.

One of the most gallant Rajput kings was Rana Pratap who did not want

to give up his kingdom to the Mughals. The Mughal king Akbar, who

wanted to control the whole of India, used a mix of tolerance,

generosity, and force to overcome the Rajput kings.

Rana Pratap was the grandson of Raja Udai Singh (Udaipur is named

after him), the king of Chittorgarh.

Rana Pratap led the Rajputs against the army of Akbar to preserve the

independence of Mewar. Rana Pratap not only had to face the mighty

Mughals but also had to fight against other Rajput kings (Raja Todar

Mal and Raja Man Singh) who aligned with the Mughals.

In the battle of Haldighati (1576), fought between Maharana Pratap

and the Mughals, the Rajputs were not able to overcome the combined

strength of the Mughals and the renegade Rajput princes played the

role of traitors. Maharana Pratap was badly hurt in the battle and

was saved by his wise horse Chetak, who took him in an unconscious

state away from the battle scene.

Rana Pratap died in 1597 and his son Amar Singh took over the

kingdom. Although Maharana Pratap was not able to thwart the Muslims

successfully, the saga of Rajput resistance to Muslim rule continued

till the 17th century when the baton of the struggle for Indian

independence from Mughals was taken up by the upcoming power of the

Marathas, who brought about an end to Muslim domination of India.

—By Madhu Ved

A.M. Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Amar Colony, Lajpat Nagar-IV,

New Delhi-110024

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